From Kathimerini
New legislation that would give unmarried couples the same rights as married ones, is on its way towards parliament. However, these rights will not be extended to gay and lesbian couples.

The brainchild of Justice Minister Sotiris Hatzigakis, the draft bill would allow unmarried couples to acquire all the tax, insurance and social benefits currently [...]

From Kathimerini . Can I just say it’s about time…

Academics and unmarried couples yesterday backed the government’s plans to introduce a cohabitation law in Greece that would give partners in a relationship the same rights as if they were married.
The plans, revealed over the weekend, would represent quite an innovation in Greece, a country with [...]

Two years ago today, I wrote a post about a law that had passed that allowed cremation in Greece for the first time in modern history. One year ago, I wrote a post pointing out that although cremation was now legal, there was still no crematorium.
Today, I am still wondering when and if this [...]

Two related articles in the Athens News this week about the conditions in police stations and prisons in Greece.
Firstly, the Europe’s Committee for the Prevention of Torture (CPT) has stated that there has been no improvement in how law enforcement officials treat detainees.

A report published by the Strasbourg-based CPT on February 8 says there has [...]

This letter was published in the Athens News on the 9th of November. Necati Zontul has been fighting his battle for justice since he was beaten and sexually abused by Greek coastguards in 2001. You can read details of the case here.

Telling of torture
IT IS clear from the report by the Germany-based [...]

From United Press International
The Greek police have been ordered to pay a fine for using traffic cameras for surveillance of a student demonstration in Athens.
The Hellenic Data Protection Authority also said police kept images from the CCTV cameras for a week, an additional violation, Kathimerini reported. The fine was set at $4,200.
Police told Kathimerini only [...]

From the Greek Helsinki Monitor
Greek Helsinki Monitor (GHM) highlights three trials of the far right newspaper “Eleftheros Kosmos” for anti-Semitic and anti-Roma articles published in 2006. “Eleftheros Kosmos” is supporting, and is supported by, the extreme right party LAOS (People’s Orthodox Rally) that has just entered Greek Parliament after the 16 September 2007 elections. LAOS [...]

An article by Kathy Tzilivakis in the Athens News covers the racist ruling that prevents non-European street vendors from selling their goods at open air markets in Greece. The Council of State (the highest administrative court) will decide next month if the Government has the right to implement such a ban. Petros Hatziris, president of [...]

The recent case of a British woman who made a deal to buy a baby from a young Romanian girl and then just took it without paying, has caused a flurry of reporting about illegal adoptions here in Greece. There are many problems that arise when dealing with cases of adoption here because

9 out of [...]

Two more people were killed and another injured by landmines in Evros, Northern Greece last Sunday. 30 people have been killed and at least 10 injured in that area since 2003.
Greece signed the Mine Ban Treaty on 3 December 1997, ratified it on 25 September 2003, and the treaty entered into force on 1 March [...]

From Kathimerini
People fleeing wars will no longer need permits to stay in the country

The government has changed the law so that foreigners who flee to Greece from war zones will not be fined for staying in the country without a residence permit, sources said yesterday. The Interior Ministry tabled the amendment after a [...]

The saga continues over the kidnapping of Pakistani men by secret agents from Greece and Britain, following the London bombings. A lawsuit has been filed against the former Public Order minister, Giorgos Voulgarakis.

Three of the Pakistani immigrants who claim that they were kidnapped by secret agents last summer have filed a criminal lawsuit against the [...]